Full Definition of RETURN

a (1): the delivery of a legal order (as a writ) to the proper officer or court (2): an endorsed certificate stating an official's action in the execution of such an order (3): the sending back of a commission with the certificate of the commissioners

b: an account or formal report

c (1): a report of the results of balloting —usually used in plural <election returns>(2): an official declaration of the election of a candidate (3)chiefly British:election

d (1): a formal statement on a required legal form showing taxable income, allowable deductions and exemptions, and the computation of the tax due (2): a list of taxable property

3

a: the continuation usually at a right angle of the face or of a member of a building or of a molding or group of moldings

b: a means for conveying something (as water) back to its starting point

4

a: a quantity of goods, consignment, or cargo coming back in exchange for goods sent out as a mercantile venture

b: the value of or profit from such venture

c (1): the profit from labor, investment, or business :yield(2)plural:results

d: the rate of profit in a process of production per unit of cost

5

a: the act of returning something to a former place, condition, or ownership :restitution<the return of stolen goods>

b: something returned; especiallyplural: unsold publications returned to the publisher for cash or credit

6

a: something given in repayment or reciprocation <a return on their years of hard work>